Stigma, fear leave mentally ill jobless

More than 80 per cent of adults with a mental illness are unemployed because of the stigma attached to their condition or the fear that their disease may be exposed, a study has found.

The survey of 1070 adults by the Mental Illness Fellowship Victoria found people suffering conditions such as depression, anxiety and schizophrenia were far more disadvantaged in the workforce than those with more obvious disabilities. Australian Bureau of Statistics figures show that only 20 per cent of people with an intellectual disability and 30 per cent with a physical disability are unemployed.

Caroline Crosse, who has set up a program through the Mental Illness Fellowship that aims to educate the corporate world, said the unemployment figures were unacceptably high.

Ms Crosse, manager of the Social Firm program, said many people concealed their mental illness from their employer "because there is so much misunderstanding, that the individual is concerned with repercussions".

She said employers were probably more receptive to people with tangible disabilities because it was easier to adjust the work environment to suit their needs than to accommodate the needs of the mentally ill.

People suffering psychotic disabilities were often "on a tightrope and it's not until there's a crash that the other co-workers find out that the person was working really hard to keep things together".

She said employers were also concerned that a mentally ill employee might be unable to cope with the demands of the job and be less productive.

The clinical adviser to depression awareness group Beyond Blue, Ian Hickie, described the workplace as the "last frontier" of mental illness.

"While we have an increasing acceptance that people with mental health problems may be members of our family or local church or sport club, employers remain extremely reluctant to have people with this kind of disability actively employed," Professor Hickie said.

He said when staff had physical health issues, employers "go out of their way" to make sure they get help and return to work, but they had no qualms about sacking workers with mental health problems.

The survey also found that those with mental illnesses often had difficulty with relationships in their private lives. Fewer than a quarter of those interviewed had a partner, 40 per cent still lived with their parents or other relatives, and a third lived alone. Only 13 per cent had children.